MARCH KEY FIGURES

		Mar Qtr 18	Dec Qtr 17 to Mar Qtr 18	Mar Qtr 17 to Mar Qtr 18
		$m	% change	% change
Trend estimates(a)
	Total new capital expenditure	29 873	0.5	4.1
	Buildings and structures	16 252	-0.6	0.8
	Equipment, plant and machinery	13 624	1.9	8.4
Seasonally adjusted(a)
	Total new capital expenditure	29 813	0.4	3.7
	Buildings and structures	16 150	-1.3	-0.6
	Equipment, plant and machinery	13 663	2.5	9.3
(a) In volume terms

New Capital Expenditure, in volume terms

MARCH KEY POINTS


ACTUAL EXPENDITURE (VOLUME TERMS)

• The trend volume estimate for total new capital expenditure rose by 0.5% in the March quarter 2018 while the seasonally adjusted estimate rose by 0.4%.
• The trend volume estimate for buildings and structures fell by 0.6% in the March quarter 2018 while the seasonally adjusted estimate fell by 1.3%.
• The trend volume estimate for equipment, plant and machinery rose by 1.9% in the March quarter 2018 while the seasonally adjusted estimate rose by 2.5%.

EXPECTED EXPENDITURE (CURRENT PRICE TERMS)

• This issue includes the sixth estimate (Estimate 6) for 2017-18 and the second estimate (Estimate 2) for 2018-19.
• Estimate 6 for 2017-18 is $117,501m. This is 3.8% higher than Estimate 6 for 2016-17. Estimate 6 is 2.8% higher than Estimate 5 for 2017-18.
• Estimate 2 for 2018-19 is $87,740m. This is 1.4% higher than Estimate 2 for 2017-18. Estimate 2 is 5.7% higher than Estimate 1 for 2018-19.
• See pages 7-10 for further commentary on expectations data.

NOTES

FORTHCOMING ISSUES

ISSUE (QUARTER)	Release Date
June 2018	30 August 2018
September 2018	29 November 2018
December 2018	28 February 2019
March 2019	30 May 2019

CHANGES TO FORTHCOMING ISSUES

From the next issue (June quarter 2018), this publication will include experimental estimates of capital expenditure for the Education and Training and Health Care and Social Assistance industries. Data from these industries have been collected over the past several quarters through the Survey of New Capital Expenditure. The June quarter publication will present quarterly data from September 2017 up to and including the June quarter 2018. This new series will be ongoing and will be presented in current price original data until there are sufficient observations to produce seasonally adjusted and trend estimates.


DATA NOTES

Mining projects tend to be complex in structure and comprise a number of different investment activities including exploration, engineering construction, plant and equipment and buildings. A feature article released in the March 2012 issue of Private New Capital Expenditure and Expected Expenditure, Australia (cat. no. 5625.0) provides a summary of the conceptual basis of the relevant ABS publications that measure investment in Australia, using a hypothetical mining project to illustrate how this investment is reflected in ABS data.


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